Dr Tarh Martha Ako Mfortem is an experienced, multilingual educational psychologist. She has been published frequently as an academic specialist, and she is also an accomplished creative writer. Here she shares her thoughts on the life she has left behind in her native Cameroon, and the life she is now building for herself and her children in Swansea.
From the feet of the Cameroon mountains
To the slopes of the Welsh mountains
Journeying in trauma and stress
Fleeing life’s threatening experiences
Escaping persecution and rights violations
Seeking for refuge, safety and life
With forcefully sealed lips and heavy steps
I trod on sinking sands
Away from the scares of torture and marginalisation
Yearning for peace, hope and a future
Clad with tales of trafficking and xenophobia
Racism, discrimination and bias
Away from all forms of violence and evil traditional practices
Feeling sealed to speak of female circumcision, of breast ironing
Maltreatment of widows and orphans
Early and forced marriages, child rape
No girl education, no female inheritance
Gender inequality and bias, evil rites of passage
Fear of reporting adult abuses, non-questioning of elders
Widow and orphans disinheritance
Child slavery, sexual violence and exploitation
Disease, political unrest, poverty, armed conflicts and corruption
When all support networks are lost to violence
Communities, friends, relatives get detached
Death feels so close and hell so loose
Never had I felt my life on a line
As in my role as feminist and activist
Gunshots became music and morgues the busiest
Streets were littered with bullets of all sizes
Every day was a struggle as tomorrow was not guaranteed
The cells were crowded, the prisons were full
The innocent were labelled and tortured to death
Not even a meal was sure, as bullets roamed the skies
There was no safe place to hide, not even the church
Lives were meaningless and the future so bleak
No one dares to criticise or speak of these atrocities
Babies were raped and shot, wives and husbands tortured
No school was safe, no life secured
No sermons were heard, as heaven was far
Headless bodies litter the street, abandoned corpses rot in bushes
Mass graves were a normalcy, and human heads were seen on streets
News of missing persons was the order of the day
As people suffered in the land of my ancestors
The pain was enormous and escape, the obvious
My heart was bleeding but my lips were sealed
I wept for the vulnerable, the women and children
Today, I stand on peaceful soil with a heavy heart
Today, I speak without mourning or trembling
On this rostrum, I feel my healing
As I speak of my pains and roll my tape of life
In pain I regain my lost treasures
In this land of freedom which I call my home
In Swansea, I found love, warmth, peace, hope and a future
A place of complete healing and sanctuary for the hopeless
An opportunity to rebuild my life, showcase my skills, strengths and weaknesses, and even greater opportunities for development
A platform to speak against societal ills
A voice to cry against wars, persecution and oppression
Swansea is a haven that welcomes our diversities and flexibilities
Its rich touristic attractions and cultural diversities are emblematic
An open access to food, educational opportunities and standard healthcare
This explains the increase in asylum seekers daily
As it fosters the integration of diverse cultures
Swansea gives us a sense of belonging, future, vision and growth
Like Oliver Twist, we must ask for more openings
For Swansea to be fully our home as refugees
We plead for cultural diversity in all government sectors
A full refugee involvement in economic, social, political programmes and policy meetings
We plead for a considerate transfer of asylum seekers with children of school-going ages – no mid-year transfers
Asylum seekers wish to work, pay taxes and help the community
This is better than a £40 payment a week
Give us an opportunity to showcase our talents and skills
Asylum seekers have a rich repertoire of knowledge
Nevertheless, we have our own challenges in Swansea
Bus fares are very expensive for us
Our children pay bus fares to school, and that leaves us little to feed them of for outings
We cannot afford to eat out or visit tourist sites as a family
We need to save for months to buy shoes or clothes from charity shops, since we cannot afford new clothes
Getting an appointment to see a GP is very challenging and costly
Schools ask for little money for events, and children’s outdoor activities
Which we shamefully cannot afford most times
Thank you, Swansea for opening your doors to us
Doors that know no race, sex, colour, colour, culture or tribe
Thank you, Swansea
Dr Tarh Martha Ako Mfortem
24.06.2022
